Can we have a moment to applaud our American team across the pond? Lauren Chan, GLAMOUR US's Fashion Features Editor, and formerly signed to Ford Models, returned to the catwalk to walk for her friend Becca McCharen-Tran, head designer at Chromat, after feeling inspired by the change in attitude towards plus models. Number of GLAMOUR UK staffers walking at Fashion Week? Still totally zero. Lauren, we salute you.

Her walk was a total hit – but soon afterwards, Lauren was attacked on her personal Instagram account, and that of GLAMOUR US editor-in-chief Cindy Leive who also shared a photo from the show celebrating Lauren's success, by body-hating trolls with no manners and no class.

Advertisement

As anyone who has been criticised for how they look, what they do, or who they are will know, these sort of comments (whether anonymous or not) are insanely hurtful. So all power to Lauren for issuing not just a clapback, but the mother of all clapbacks.

She wrote in a post on Chromat's Instagram: "My whole body of work as an editor is focused on redefining the social norms about size and on making women feel valued no matter what they look like. Period. I have never been attacked for putting my plus-size model friends in the pages (and on the cover) of Glamour. Not once have I received hateful letters for writing critiques on the fashion industry's sizeism. And no one threatened me personally when I made clothing up to size 28 or helped designers launch plus sizes. But once I had the *audacity* to get my size 16 ass in a swimsuit and walk a runway...well...the negative comments were so bad that Glamour spoke out against them publicly.

Read next

This body shaming post is going viral for a very important reason

Such an important message.

3 days ago

"So hear this haters: WOMEN 👏🏼 LIKE 👏🏼 ME 👏🏼 ARE 👏🏼 NOT 👏🏼 HERE 👏🏼 FOR 👏🏼 YOUR 👏🏼 SHIT. We are not here to be policed. We are not here to serve as sex objects. We are not here to keep quiet. We are not here to look or behave or talk in a way that makes you feel comfortable. Oh and while we're talking about you – fuck you. If even one person reads this feminist statement and feels empowered, you lose."

Advertisement

Lauren was backed up by both GLAMOUR US and Cindy Leive who wrote a searing attack on trolls that was later regrammed on GLAMOUR US's Instagram.

Cindy had previously posted a picture celebrating Lauren's feat, and was shocked by the comments that were left attacking Lauren's figure, health and clothes.

"What do you see when you look at this picture? I see a talented fashion writer, former varsity athlete, and most of all a HUMAN — Lauren Chan, my colleague here at GLAMOUR magazine.

Read next

A blogger claims putting toothpaste on her boobs made them less saggy in just 5 days

Keep it perky, people!

08 Feb 2019

"But when I posted a picture of Lauren proudly strutting down the runway at Friday’s Chromat show , I was at first startled and then nauseated by some of the comments – too insulting to legitimise by repeating here, but vile and humiliating; they jeered at and mocked her body.

"The comments on Lauren’s own Instagram were even worse – all men, she said, all vicious, and most with anonymous profiles. She ended up staying off social media for most of what should have been a triumphant champagne-filled weekend, and that both breaks my heart and pisses me off.

"To state what should be obvious: Critiquing women’s bodies is not OK. And not just because Lauren is healthy and fit. She is, but that isn’t the point, since I don’t believe these commenters really care about her wellbeing; this is caveman misogyny disguised as medical opinion ... I won’t let you run down my beautiful colleagues, especially when they’re putting themselves out there to help OTHER women feel gorgeous.

"Trolls: Women don’t need your permission to look how they want, do what they want, and most certainly they do not need to measure up (or down) to your contrived ideas of how women should appear." We believe all bodies are beautiful and every one of us has the right to feel freaking amazing in our skin, and we're all capable of achieving whatever we set out to do. Along with Cindi, we're raising a glass to Lauren, and to every woman out there willing to be herself on a daily basis. There are a lot of us."

Advertisement

Lauren later told Yahoo Style: “This was the first time that I’d experienced such an intense influx of negativity. It wasn’t just negativity like, ‘I don’t like your swimsuit and I don’t like the way you look.’ Not to give these words power by repeating them, but they were comments about me, my character, my health. They were really aggressive and vile. They were all from locked profiles, and most of them were men. That particular pattern really jarred me as a feminist.”

Well said Cindy, and Lauren – and Lauren: the whole GLAMOUR UK office is raising mugs of tea in your honour. Congratulations on your achievement – which is more than those asshats trolling you have to offer.